"3 Weeks, 1 Post"

Hello Hello,


I finally have a couple hours to reflect on the past few weeks. I've only updated you through Nha Trang. Right now I'm in Nepal. Between now and then I've been to Thailand and Cambodia. Very sorry to those of you who have been checking my blog daily (or bi-daily) for the past three weeks eagerly anticipating a new post, only to be continually disappointed...

It's nighttime here in Pokhara, Nepal and my mind keeps wandering due to a full day of busing from Kathmandu. I apologize in advance if I get too far off topic. I'll keep the twenty rupi coffee flowing for the next few hours to make up for lost time.

Here's my best attempt at sharing three weeks of my travels with you through a single post:

Saigon - My nighttime adventures remained minimal in the Westernized city of Saigon due to my unfortunate encounter with Escolar two day before. I managed to "wobble" out of the hotel room to see the two major attractions: The Vietnam war memorial, a breathtaking display of pictures that is a must see for even those who are not the museum type (like myself). We, also, toured the Cu-chi tunnels near Saigon that served of the Vietcong's station in the south. After only a two day stay in Saigon we were ready to move our way out the big city into the lush Mekong Delta.


Mekong Delta - The majority of our time in the delta was spent boating on the Mekong River. The experience can be best described by viewing my photos. Notice the floating markets, villages along the river, rice noodle plantations, and coconut candy factories. From the delta we boarded a little "slow-boat" to Cambodia! Unfortunately, I forgot my sea-sickness medicine at home.

GOODBYEEEEE VIETNAM! stupid joke for those who get it... We only planned to spend two weeks in Vietnam, which somehow turned into 4 weeks. I'm not sure how that happened. Actually, if I had to point blame, it would be towards billards and the beach. But, I feel like we did everything, went nearly everywhere, learned a great deal about the Vietnamese culture, and even picked up a bit of the language. Vietnam was an excellent place to start the first backpacking adventure of my life. And surely not the last...


Phenom Phen, Cambodia - Cambodia was a change of scene from Vietnam. Definitely a different culture due to its shocking history (of which I knew nothing before my travels). Between 1975-1979 the Khmer Rouge attempted to kill everyone in the country that could read or write with a goal of creating the perfect socialist nation of peasants. An estimated 2 million civilians were killed. Our first stop in Cambodia was the capital, Phenom Phen. Our one day in Phenom Phen was not enjoyable, but a day that will not be forgotten. We started at S-21 prison which has been turned into a museum. The barbed wire, cells, floor tiles, and torture devices have not been removed. After S-21 we made our way to on of the nearby killing fields which has only partially been cleaned up since the genocide. All the adults we spoke with had been directly affected by the Khmer Rough Revolution.



SMALL WORLD STORY: While waiting in line to by my tickets for S-21 I received a gentle tap on the shoulder. I turned around to shoo away the normal haggler. Due to our geographic location, the "haggler" spoke with a shaking uncertainty in her voice: "Did you go to Mercer Island?" What... Is this possible. Am I dreaming.... No way... Natasha? We hugged each other in shock. The "haggler" was Natasha L. a high school classmate. We had even volunteered together for the DARE program. I soon found out she's on a semester at sea program. It's a small world...



Seim Reap, Cambodia -It was nice to depart the depressing nature of Phenom Phen to Seim Reap, one of my favorite places so far. We found a great hotel with many fun young people and spent four nights. Much of our time was spent watching back to back episodes of The Wire. If you're look for a great place to chill on you're own Southeast Asia adventure, Seim Reap is "Sam's Pick"! Stay at the Garden Village Hostel... (and no, I don't get commission).


Bangkok - We spent two nights in Bangkok before jumping on Royal Nepal Airlines. Two nights on Koh San road is more than enough time to get a feel for the city... The street food is amazing! I ate Pad Thai and beef skews almost every meal and didn't get sick. Sam ran into one problem in Thailand. I'm very much attracted to Thai girls, but they were much more interested in my wallet than my super suave "game" and the sexy tailored shirts I had purchased in Hoi An. When I told Ari that some Thai girl really "likes me for me" he laughed and set me straight. Just kidding. That never happened...


The momentary energy from the coffee is draining, so I must say goodbye. Forgive me for the 3 weeks of a post less blog. If I caused anyone a near-fatal amounts of stress, I hope you feel a bit better.

Hope all is well,
Sam